“Everything is wrong about it.” “Why?” he asked.
“Because…because… It just is. It needs to stop.”
“Honey, fireworks like that don’t go off for just anyone,” he said, moving closer to her.
“Why would you stop something that we both know would be amazing?”
She bit her bottom lip, drawing his gaze to her plump, full mouth. The urge to taste her again was strong.
“Haven’t you been listening? You’re not my type.” Uncertainty crossed her features, as if she wasn’t sure she still meant it.
He could see the quick rise and fall of her chest as he got even closer. “Honey, you were rocking on my lap like I was exactly your type.”
Lauren’s mouth dropped opened, and a red splash of color stained her cheeks. “This is exactly why you are not my type.” Clenching her fists by her sides, she took a couple of steps away from him. “You pretty boys with your good looks and everything else you have, think you can have anyone you want. But I’ve had my disaster like you, and I have no intention of repeating it just because you’re good with your hands.”
Now it was Jack’s turn to see red, and fury bubbled in his chest. “Hang on a minute.
You’re comparing me to the married prick that dumped you after getting you pregnant?”
Her eyes darted away, and she had the good sense to look guilty. “I’m sure you’re not exactly like Graham, but men in your league think they can do whatever they want with whoever they want and then move on. I don’t want to get involved with someone like that again.”
Leaning his hip on the edge of the old table, he folded his arms across his chest. The casual stance belied the steel in his voice. “You keep judging me on another guy’s behavior. It’s really pissing me off.”
“Look around you, Jack.” She opened her arms out wide. “What did you do to this woman to make her come here and trash the place?” When he stood stone silent, Lauren scoffed.
“You may not be as different from Graham as you think you are.”
With that, she marched past him to head to the door. Shooting his hand out, he grabbed her arm and pulled her back to face him. “You don’t know me well enough to compare me. I’m not seducing a young woman, pretending I’m single and promising things I’m never going to give. This is what it is. Two people finding enjoyment with one another. It doesn’t have to be anything more.” But a niggling feeling in the pit of his gut tried to tell him something different.
He pushed it away to examine at another time.
“You may be up-front about what you want, but I know enough about you to know
you’re not what I want. I’ve heard about the different women every night, the groupies you pick up, and the sex parties you throw. I also know not to believe everything I hear, but tell me, Jack, is none of that true?”
Dropping her arm, he dug his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He couldn’t deny it, because some of what she said was true.
She met his gaze. “I’m not going to be the flavor of the day.” She picked up her briefcase and walked toward the door. This time he let her go. “I’ve got everything I need for now. I’ll be in touch when I have something to show you.”
* * * *
Jack stared at the numbers swimming around on the computer screen, not making sense of anything. The more he sat there punching in numbers, the messier he made the spreadsheet. He needed something more physical to do, so he left Ellen to take care of the office and went searching for things to do in the store. Jack tackled through boxes of stock, rearranged exercise equipment, and surprised a few browsing fans.
Even keeping himself busy, he couldn’t get Lauren out of his head. The way her stricken face exuded pure fear when she ran to him with Emma was something he’d never forget. If he’d known, he never would have left her alone with Emma.
Then, after she’d gotten off on him, giving him a sweet taste of her and making him want to go back for more, she went and compared him to that prick Graham Stone.
The scumbag had a lot to answer to for letting a young woman go through that kind of hell. Jack never liked him. He always came across as an arrogant asshole who thought his shit didn’t stink. A big shot journalist who could interview anyone he wanted, except for Jack. Over the years, on numerous occasions, Graham had requested an interview with Jack, and each time, he refused. He knew Graham didn’t want to show Australia the real Jack Henderson. The Jack Henderson who’d worked his butt off to become one of the best football players in the country.
No, Graham was only interested in Jack’s social life: the partying and the women.
And now Jack well and truly knew how much of a bastard Graham Stone was. The thought of Lauren, so young and alone, dealing with such a devastating time in her life made his chest tight. So he’d comforted her the only way he knew how. He’d never meant for it to go as far as it did, but when Lauren became so responsive to a couple of kisses there was no stopping him.
Touching her made him hard and ready in a flash. The sweet scent and smoothness of her skin drove him crazy. She’d been so sensitive that she’d exploded like a wildcat on his lap. Jack had to grit his teeth and sing the national anthem in his mind to stop himself from having his own explosion.
Then she had the nerve to tell him he wasn’t her type. Not her type? He’d like to see how she reacted to someone whowasher type. No, wait… That thought made him very uncomfortable. He didn’t want to think about Lauren getting her rocks off with another man. Which was stupid really...why should he care? He liked Lauren, liked her a lot, but there was some truth in what she’d said. Jack liked the company of many women, not a different woman every night like she accused him of, but he didn’t do the settling-down-with-one-woman thing.
Maybe it was for the best he stayed away from Lauren. Keep things professional. He wasn’t what she needed in her life. She needed more than a quick fuck on a desk chair. But now that he’d gotten a taste of her he couldn’t help from wanting to take a bigger bite. Between them, a spark had been lit that promised to build into a dangerous wildfire if not contained.